The European social model has been trying for years to fight poverty and social exclusion. Its submodels, or rather the countries implementing the submodels, each have their own regime of governing and using the funds intended to fight poverty and social exclusion. Poverty and social exclusion as well as their historical background are described in detail for a better understanding of the issue. The historical background of the models is also described, as well as how and with what purpose they were developed. Each of the models tries to satisfy the needs of their respective inhabitants; however, we have come to the realization that the models are not equally effective. There is also the strategy called Europe 2020, which also tries to change Europe for the better. The purpose of this thesis is to find out how the European models impact poverty and social exclusion in individual states. We compare the Anglo-Saxon, Continental, Scandinavian and Mediterranean models, and the statistical data on the percentage of inhabitants who are at risk of poverty and social exclusion in the countries for which the models are typical. Additionally, we compare how the models affect youth employment, educational opportunities, government expenditures, and so on. Results arrived at by the statistical method show that the Scandinavian model, which has also been an example for other models, truly is the best in fighting poverty and social exclusion, because countries adhering to the Scandinavian model surpass other countries in almost all points. It also turns out that the Mediterranean model is the least effective in fighting poverty and social exclusion. At the very end, some suggestions are given which might help improve the models in order to find a solution to poverty and social exclusion.
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